The Greasers

Ponyboy Curtis

The main protagonist of the book. His parents died when he was younger, so he lives with his two brothers, Sodapop and Darry. He's fourteen, and very intelligent; he even skipped a grade. Played by C. Thomas Howell in the film.

Nobody Touches the Hair: He's really fond of his hair, and Johnny even tells him that he and Soda had the coolest hair in town. Too bad for Pony, because he has to cut and bleach it after he runs away.

Tagalong Kid: Played with in that the gang consists of the childhood friends of his older brothers, but Steve seems to be the only one that truly considers him as such. He's shown to hang out with Dallas and Two-bit without the presence of either of his brothers, and is very close with Johnny.

Johnny Cade

Sixteen years old and Pony's best friend. Both of his parents are abusive, and his real family is the gang. Played by Ralph Macchio in the film.

Abusive Parents: His father beats him every time Johnny is home and his mother ignores him.

Beware the Nice Ones / Beware the Quiet Ones: He was always nice but after his jumping he became even quieter and started carrying a switchblade with the intent to kill whoever try to jump him like that again which he does.

Break the Cutie: Four months before the start of the story, Johnny got jumped by four Socs and got badly beaten, since then, Ponyboy describes him as being constantly jumpy and is very sensitive.

Heroic Sacrifice: It was ultimately the fire rescue which killed him, that helped increase his and Ponyboy's chances of getting cleared of the murder charges that would have put Johnny in jail and Ponyboy into a boy's home.

Papa Wolf: Not as much as Darry, but still has his moments. After the rumble Ponyboy sees him straddling an unconscious socs muttering to himself, later Darry explains that the Soc was the one who kicked Ponyboy in the head and Sodapop kept pounding him during the rest of the fight.

Darrel "Darry" Curtis Jr.

Pony and Soda's oldest brother, who took over the family after the death of their parents. He's often a jerk to Ponyboy, but this is really just how he expresses his feelings. Played by Patrick Swayze in the film.

Adult Fear: Ponyboy running away. Made worse when he meets up with Johnny, get’s jumped by Socs, accidentally gets caught up in a murder, and has to run from the law.

Aloof Big Brother: His relationship with Ponyboy has some strain, mainly because of all the other responsibilities he's saddled with.

Blessed with Suck: Multiple times, Ponyboy mentions that the only thing that separates Darry from being a Soc is the gang, and because of their parents dying, he couldn't go to college, and had to look after Pony and Soda.

Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He's tough on his brother and seems to view him as an annoyance, but he does love him and watches out for him.

Freudian Excuse: Dally became a hardened thug because he would have died years ago if he didn't, his father didn't care about him and grew up on rough streets.

Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He's resigned to the fact that he is a worthless criminal, it's even stated in the novel that he always gets what he wants, but there isn't anything he wouldn't do for the other greasers.

Suicide by CopTricks the police into shooting him by pointing an empty handgun after he robs a store after Johnny's death.

Undying Loyalty: He may be a delinquent with a rap sheet a mile long, but once he's your friend, he's your friend for life.

Keith "Two-Bit" Mathews

Another member of the Greaser's gang. Played by Emilio Estevez in the film.

Beware the Nice Ones / Beware the Silly Ones: Out of all the greasers, Two-Bit is the less serious and one of the nicer ones of the bunch. However, after visiting Johnny in the hospital, he was in no mood to take Mrs. Cade's crap anymore.

Socs

Cherry Valance

A high school cheerleader who Johnny and Pony meet at the movies. She takes a liking to Ponyboy, stating that he's not like other Greasers, and this was enough to eventually open her eyes to what they are really like. Dated Bob before he was killed by Johnny. Played by Diane Lane in the film.

Heel–Face Turn: The day before the rumble, Randy seeks out Ponyboy to tell him that he (Randy) will not be participating. Not only that, but he practically pours his heart out to the younger boy, admitting that the Soc-Greaser feud is nothing but an exercise in futility and that he's so sick of all the fighting that he's ready to leave town.

Hidden Depths: He's not just some jerkass with nothing to do but jump Greasers.

Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Possibly...? If any of the Socs reach this level, it's him (aside from Marcia and Cherry). He didn't stop David from almost drowning Ponyboy, but Bob's murder definitely triggers something inside of him.

Paul

A friend of Darry's while he was in high school. They were both on the football team, but he was able to go to college when Darry wasn't, and they now hate each other. Darry was able to release his jealousy on him during the rumble.

Face–Heel Turn: This is implied, as he and Darry used to be friends, but after years without seeing each other, they end up facing off at the rumble instead of making up.

Informed Ability: The whole reputation of Paul playing on the same football team with Darry implies that he is just as tough as Darry. Yet Darry lays him out in the first few punches before he runs away.

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